Summer food

Eating in summertime is an occasion to be fêted, as beautiful fruits and vegetables abound. Here are some hot hits of the past week.

Arugula with soy beans, spiced almonds and raspberries.

Muffin and 1989 National Geographic at Commune.

Cured chickpea salad; chicken sandwich.

I consume the muffin; Joe consumes an article on the USSR.

Fried sardines.

Joe demonstrates the tomato salad, may or may not be posing for a mug shot.

Simple summer pasta salad

After two and a half days of soup and raw garlic (wonderful when one has a cold, tiresome on the senses very quickly), I was more than ready to move on to a solid dinner. So, while preparing my meals-in-mason jars for tomorrow in rehearsals, I also whipped a quick pasta salad to enjoy on the porch.

Zucchini and chickpeas in jars.

Summer pasta salad

(serves 2)

1 cup [whole wheat] pasta, dry

3 large, ripe tomatoes

1/2 Haas avocado

extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar

salt, fresh-ground pepper

3 to 5 leaves fresh basil

Instructions are hardly needed: Boil pasta as directed. Drain the cooked pasta and toss with olive oil in a bowl to let cool. Chop coarsely the tomatoes and the avocado. Toss all of the components together with more olive oil as necessary, a dash of balsamic, salt and pepper to taste. Finely chop the basil and add to the salad before serving.

Winter Weeknight salad

While yesterday's slush spurred me to cook up a hearty dinner of sweet potatoes and baked bluefish (we bought a whole specimen and called him Bernard) covered with bacon and shallots, today seemed like a salad night. The result was a welcome mixture of tart, sweet and rich tastes and textures.

Arugula and pear salad with feta and pumpkin seeds.

The mixture, per plate:

A couple hefty handfuls of arugula or other dark green (spinach, etc..)

Half pear (red Anjou here), quartered and cut into thin slices

1 tbsp pumpkin seeds (pepitas), toasted

1 oz feta

The dressing, for two plates:

1/4 cup kefir or tart plain yogurt

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp lemon juice

salt and pepper to taste

As is generally the case when I cook, I end up using ingredients off the top of my head, and mixing them by sight and taste rather than by strict number. I encourage you to do the same, and to disregard my "recipe" in however many ways you see fit.